Home Office sends 100 letters in error to EU citizens saying they are liable for ‘detention’

The Home Office has sent approximately 100 letters to EU citizens telling them that they are liable for “detention.”

This enormous error only came to light after a Finnish academic, Eva Johanna who does have the right to live in the UK opened her letter and then posted this on Twitter: “Home Office wants to deport a Finnish academic who is married to a Brit and pays taxes in Britain, i.e. me.”

A Home Office spokesperson said: “A limited number of letters were issued in error and we have been urgently looking into why this happened.

“We are contacting everyone who received this letter to clarify that they can disregard it.

“We are absolutely clear that the rights of EU nationals living in the UK remain unchanged.”

Executive director James McGroy of the Pro-EU campaign group Open Britain said: “It’s little wonder that many EU citizens feel worried about their future status in the UK when they hear of people with every right to be here getting letters threatening their deportation.

“The Home Office show scant sign of being able to get a completely new immigration regime up and running by 2019.

“Ministers should drop their damaging rhetoric about an immigration target and instead come forward with proposals that recognise the work of EU nationals already in this country, and others who we will undoubtedly need in the future.”